


That's Where It Is

by steadypearlgiver



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-27
Updated: 2014-05-27
Packaged: 2018-01-26 17:47:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1697018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/steadypearlgiver/pseuds/steadypearlgiver
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prim makes Katniss take her to a karaoke bar for her birthday.</p>
            </blockquote>





	That's Where It Is

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first one-shot, or first anything on here really so I hope it doesn't disappoint anyone who happens to stumble upon it, but I enjoyed writing this immensely. Let me know what you think if you want!

Katniss flinched as she heard her name called over the microphone.

“Well, looks like you’re up Everdeen!” Johanna laughed as she passed out the shots.

She scowled. Of course Prim would demand to go to a karaoke bar for her twenty first birthday. Katniss knew her sister only chose karaoke because she wanted to make Katniss sing to her all night. At least she got to choose the song for herself this time.

The girls all cheered for Katniss after they threw back the second shot of the night. They’d been there for an hour and a half now and it had been a pretty busy night so far. As Katniss slid out of her space in the large booth, she heard a loud ruckus from the table near the stage. She glanced at a table of at least a dozen guys that had just arrived and noticed that half of them looked drunk already.

“Great,” She muttered to herself as she stepped up onto the stage.

The lights on stage were hot and bright but weren’t enough to block out her view of the bar in front of her. She almost didn’t hear the music start over the loud men settling in to the right of her, but when she did, she braced herself for the opening lines.

_Please baby can't you see_

_My mind's a burnin' hell_

_I got razors a rippin' and tearin' and strippin'_

_My heart apart as well_

 

The bar quieted down through the next verse and she focused all her attention on Prim and her friends. She could already feel herself settling into the song as she hit the chorus and she pointed to Prim as she belted out the next lines.

 

_But I’m the only one_

_Who’ll walk across the fire for you_

_I’m the only one_

_Who’ll drown in my desire for you_

 

She could hear Prim squeal in delight and the rest of the girls started whooping it up when they saw Katniss begin putting on a show. When she glanced around the open room, she noticed the large table of men had quieted down significantly and was relieved that not many of them seemed to notice her on stage. She made her way back to the middle of the stage and placed the mic back into its stand as she finished out the song, and when the music faded out there was a split second of silence before the bar filled with cheers and applause.

She jumped off the stage with her head down and took another gulp of whatever fruity cocktail her sister must’ve ordered when she got back to their booth.

“I’m SO glad you did Melissa Etheridge, Katniss!” Madge slurred, while leaning in heavily for a hug and Katniss knew it’d probably be an early night for her lightweight friend.

“Thank you so much Kat it was great as per usual!” Prim added.

Katniss rolled her eyes. “Yeah yeah, the birthday girl is next so start thinking about what song you’re going to sing for us.”

Prim giggled and jumped out of the booth while the girls started chatting again. “Already know it!” She threw over her shoulder as she headed to the sign up list. Katniss took a moment to look around the room as she took a sip of water and almost choked when Johanna slapped her hard on the arm.

“Ow! What?” She yelped as she rubbed her arm.

“I said that guy has been staring at you ever since you left the stage,” Johanna replied. “You should go over and get to know each other, if you know what I mean.” She wiggled her eyebrows at Katniss suggestively.

Katniss followed Johanna’s eyes to the large table of men near the stage and her eyebrows raised when she met eyes with a stocky blonde. She quickly looked away when he smiled and was met with Johanna cackling at her.

“Can it Jo, this conversation isn’t happening,” Katniss groaned.

“Oh come on Kat when was the last time you got laid? You need to loosen up. With a stranger. Who has deep blue eyes and a nice ass.” Johanna grinned.

“I have to say, I’m with Jo on this one Katniss,” Annie smiles as she takes a sip of her drink. “Have a little fun, we’re celebrating tonight!”

Katniss sighed and let her eyes flit to the blonde man again as she tried to drown out her friends’ laughter. Prim came bounding back to the booth a minute later and announced that her turn would come in about fifteen minutes. Thankfully the discussion of the cute man was dropped.

“Annie and Rue will you _please_ help me by singing the backup vocals for the song I picked?” Prim begged. Rue and Annie both happily agreed and the three girls spent the better part of the next fifteen minutes practicing their routine. While the girls talked, Katniss let her mind wander to her earlier conversation with her friends. Sure she hadn’t dated in a while like Madge and Annie had, and she sure as hell wasn’t the type to have a new guy in her bed every night like Johanna, but it’s not like she was unhappy. She just didn’t think about relationships or hookups as often as her friends did.

The feedback from the mic snapped her out of her thoughts as the man onstage started to announce the next singer.

“And now we have Katniss and Prim Everdeen singing ‘It’s in His Kiss’ by Betty Everett.”

“WHAT!” Katniss nearly choked on her drink. “Prim this was supposed to be your turn! I’m not going up there to sing that song!”

Prim laughed and grabbed her older sister out of the booth. “Come on Katniss, technically I will be singing, just back up. And you promised to sing a few songs for me tonight.”

“Yeah, which I’ve already done. Prim come on!” Katniss huffed. She did not want to sing a song while her sister and her friends danced and sang behind her. Annie and Rue just laughed and helped Prim push Katniss in front of the mic stand.

Her countdown started and Katniss knew she didn’t have a choice at this point. She sang out the first words and tried not to roll her eyes.

 

_Does he love me I want to know_

_How can I tell if he loves me so_

 

The girls quickly came in with their backup lines to join Katniss and when she turned around she couldn’t help but laugh at their over-the-top moves. Prim looked so happy, and Katniss reminded herself that it was a pretty short song. She started to move her feet a little with the beat and the crowd in the bar cheered loudly.

Towards the end of the song, she could feel the three girls behind her getting closer and just before the music stopped they finished with an exaggerated “ _That’s where it is!_ ” into the mic. They all laughed loudly and hugged Katniss as they stepped off the stage.

Katniss rolled her eyes at Johanna’s smirk when she got back to the booth and decided it would be a good time to grab a drink at the bar.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes, I’m going to the bar,” she said quickly and turned on her heel.

It only took a couple of minutes to flag down the bartender. She didn’t even notice the man to her left until the bartender asked for his order.

“Yeah uh, I’ll have a fuzzy navel thanks,” the man said. The bartender nodded and smirked as he turned to get the drink ready. Katniss caught herself laughing and turned to the man. She stopped short when she realized it was the blonde man who she had smiled at her earlier in the night.

“Fuzzy navel?” She asked.

“I can’t say that’s the first time I’ve gotten that reaction when I order that drink,” the man chuckled. He wouldn’t meet her eyes and she noticed the embarrassed look on his face.

“Sorry,” she apologized, “I’ve just never seen someone order that drink before.”

He returned her smile and shrugged. “Someone, or a guy?”

“It just seems like a bit of a clichéd drink. Like ‘Sex on the Beach’, who really orders that kind of drink outside of a romantic comedy?”

He laughed again and she blushed.

“I’m Peeta,” he said as he held out his hand.

“Katniss.” She replied as she took his hand.

 What was she doing? She wasn’t the type to flirt with random guys in a bar. She glanced back at her booth and was thankful that none of the girls seemed to notice her conversation.

He looked uncomfortable. Shit. This is why she never did this, she had no idea what she was supposed to say, she’d probably offended him.

“Sorry,” he said, “do you have to get back to your friends?”

“Oh,” she blushed again, “no, I was just checking on my sister, it’s her birthday.”

“Aw that’s cool, would it be weird of me to ask how old she is?” He smiled nervously.

“Well it’s weird if you’re trying to make a move on her.” She deadpanned. She watched as the color drained from his face and laughed, “Kidding! But she’s twenty one so she dragged us all out here to hear us sing.”

His smile broadened and he finally let his eyes meet hers. She found herself staring. How could someone have eyes that blue? A pale blue starting at his pupils faded into a dark edge. He looked away shyly. The awkward silence that followed after was painful but not as painful as the person onstage slurring out “Baby Got Back”. She eyed the stage and turned her head back to him before they both burst out laughing.

“That is by far the most ridiculous thing I have seen tonight.” She laughed. He shook his head.

“Just be glad you won’t hear me sing tonight.” He said.

 “I’m sure you’d be fine,” she said. “Especially after that.” She laughed, hooking her thumb in the direction of the stage.

“Well I definitely couldn’t top you. You sounded really amazing up there, I couldn’t stop listening.”

She blushed. She didn’t know how to feel about the compliment. Usually guys would throw in a line about wanting to hear her at a private show back at their apartment or something but he seemed so genuine. Maybe she should loosen up a little.

“Sorry I didn’t mean to sound so creepy,” he laughed and scratched the back of his neck. “I never know what to say to girls that make me nervous.” His eyes widened at what he said and dropped to the floor.

She guessed if she was going to loosen up, now would be as good a time as any. She set her hand on his knee and he slowly lifted his eyes to hers. He opened his mouth to say something but she didn’t hear what he said. She was too focused on his lips. She wondered what they would feel like against her own, and in a split second decided she’d like to know. He looked startled when she leaned in but closed his eyes when she caught his lips with hers.

It was a short kiss and as soon as it ended she knew she needed another. He beat her to it. Her hand was still on his knee as they cautiously kissed each other. When she leaned back they smiled at each other and then started awkwardly laughing as they heard the next singer belting out Bon Jovi’s “Livin on a Prayer”.

“Do you want to move towards the back?” He asked. “It’s probably a little quieter back there.”

She couldn’t get up fast enough and he laughed when he saw her haste, but quickly followed suit. Katniss led the way to a back hallway until she felt Peeta’s hand on her arm and he tugged her gently back to him. She suddenly felt very awkward. What were they supposed to do now? She didn’t know the protocol for this sort of thing. He leaned in and kissed her again and she could barely remember her last train of thought. His lips were slightly chapped but she didn’t mind. He tasted like peach schnapps and smelled faintly of nutmeg.

She gasped when he backed her into the wall behind her and she slid her fingers into the hair on the back of his head. She could feel him smile against her mouth as he rested a hand on her hip. When she felt his tongue swipe her bottom lip, she opened her mouth a little. She was lost in him. She could only focus on his tongue as it slid against her own-

“Oh _hey_ Katniss, we were wondering where you went.”

Shit. Katniss and Peeta broke away from each other quickly and she looked up to see Johanna smirking at her while Prim’s mouth hung open in shock.

“We were just going to the bathroom,” Johanna said as she slipped past the pair, pulling Prim along with her. “Carry on.”

And then they were gone. Whatever trance the two of them had been in was clearly broken and the awkward silence from before returned.

She finally looked up and he was nervously rubbing his hands on his jeans.

“Sorry, I never do this kind of thing.” She finally said.

She heard him let out a breath. “Me either, I’m not sure what to say in this situation.” He said with a shy smile.

She returned his smile. “I guess I shouldn’t have had those shots. My sister won’t stop ordering fruity cocktails so they’re all I’ve had.”

“That’s surprising, I really had you pegged for an appletini sort of girl.” He chuckled.

She shot him a playful glare and he laughed a little harder.

“Kidding,” he said. “But that’s an easy fix, just order a really manly drink when you get back.”

“Oh, you mean like a fuzzy navel?” She quipped.

He tried to look offended. “Hey! What’s says man more than a hairy stomach?”

She laughed at his logic and looked toward to bar area. “Well I guess I should head back to my booth and let the ridicule begin. Thanks for…that.”

He laughed and looked a little sad. “Anytime.”

She beat Prim and Johanna back but only by about thirty seconds. When they told the rest of the table what they caught Katniss doing and with who, the girls all cheered and teased Katniss about her brief make out session with the cute blonde from the beginning of the night. Johanna declared that this moment deserved a toast but just as she called for a waitress, two arrived and started setting down some bright, tropical looking drinks.

“Oh I’m sorry we didn’t order these drinks,” Katniss said in confusion.

“No ma’am, this round is courtesy of the gentleman sitting at the table in front,” the girl replied, pointing to the table near the stage.

Katniss looked over to where the waitress pointed and saw Peeta smiling smugly at her and raising his glass toward her booth.

The girls all laughed and cheered for Peeta and the blush he was causing to creep up Katniss’ neck.

“Fuzzy navels for the table,” the second waitress said, “and this drink is special for you ma’am. Scotch on the rocks.” She saw a number written on the napkin her drink was set on.

The waitresses left as Johanna started the toast. “To Prim’s first legal night out and to Katniss for groping a complete stranger!” Johanna yelled and the girls all cheered and drank.

Katniss lifted her glass in Peeta’s direction and discreetly slid the napkin into her pocket, taking a sip of her scotch.


End file.
